Strategies for Inculcating Life Skills in CBSE Schools of Varanasi City

Abstract

Life Skills Education is a value addition programme for children and youth to understand self and enable them to analyze their capacity to enhance the function in most productive way so they empower efficiently in challenging situations. Life Skills include psychosocial competencies and interpersonal skills that help people make informed decisions, solve problems, think critically and creatively, communicate effectively, build healthy relationships, empathize with others, and manage their lives in a healthy and productive manner. Life Skills are needed at all stages and phases of life, but it becomes important for children and adolescents because this is crucial stage on which future of individual depends. The Life Skills programme is a very important and integral part of the educational system worldwide. It is a school based programme where Life Skills are imparted in a supportive learning environment. The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), India has introduced Life Skills Education as an integral part of its curriculum and provides guidelines for transaction of the ten core Life Skills. Though Life skills are often learned indirectly through experience and practice but it would be enhanced directly by implementing through a dedicated Life skills curriculum by using proper and suitable transaction methods. In school based programme to teach Life Skills in supportive leaning environment teacher’s role is very crucial. Teachers should be act as positive role models for students as Life Skills are better caught then taught. So it is significant to know what strategies teachers build to inculcate the Life Skills among students. The present paper focuses on the ten core Life Skills necessary for students and the strategies used by CBSE teachers at upper primary level of Varanasi City to transact and internalize these Life Skills among students. Survey method was used for the study. Sample consisted of 225 teachers teaching at upper primary level from 31 CBSE schools selected purposively. Content analysis was used to analyse data obtained from questionnaire prepared by reseacher, frequency and percentage were calculated. The findings provide information regarding strategies practiced by CBSE teachers would be helpful for designing Life Skills Training Module.